Ironing board cover with transverse securing means



D. LEHRMAN June 28, 1955 IRONING BOARD COVER WITH TRANSVERSE SECURING MEANS Filed July 3, 1953 ATTORNEYS United States Patent 9 IRONING BOARD COVER WITH TRANSVERSE SECURING MEANS David Lehrman, Philadelphia, Pa.

Application July 3, 1953, Serial No. 365,986

1 Claim. (Cl. 38-140) This invention relates to a cover or pad for an ironing board or cover or pad for a pressing machine, the primary object of which is to permit one, with a minimum of manipulation, to secure the cover tautly around the marginal edge of the board or pressing machine head,

thus eliminating wrinkles, distortions, and movement in the cover.

Heretofore, a cover was secured to an ironing board by means of a draw string extending through a marginal hem in the cover. This applied only longitudinal tension to the cover and, absent any transverse tension, wrinkles and distortions would still remain in the cover because the sides of the cover were not pulled together. I am also aware of the existence of such United States patents as Santangelo No. 2,264,644; Lewis No. 1,885,737; Poser No. 1,789,282; La Chapelle No. 1,844,128; and

Stone Nos. 876,410 and 941,430, which disclose various means for applying transverse tension to the sides of ironing board covers. However, in each of said parents, the means employed comprises rods extending through the marginal hems of the covers and springs and the like engaging opposite ends of the rods exposed through the hems.

It is an important object of the present invention to provide an ironing board with transverse tensioning means which overcomes the disadvantages residing in the present conventional covers, and which obviates the necessity of using hems, rods and special springs as disclosed in the patents mentioned hereabove.

A further object of the invention is to provide an ironing board cover combining a marginal-reinforcing band or bias binding with a draw string therethrough, preformed apertures in the marginal band or bias binding through which portions of the draw string extend as eyelets, and a further draw string laced through the eyelets an engaged beneath the top of the ironing board. The

res ting cover is not only easy to manipulate on the ironi g board but, because of the use of a reinforcing band or bias binding insteadpf a hem, considerable time and expense is saved in the provision of required aperturestherein.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cover of the character described in which a means is associated with theeyelets to prevent their withdrawal or retraction into the'reirlforcing band or bias binding, thus simplifying vtheopera-tio of lacing a second draw string through the eyelets benea the ironing board top to apply transverse \tension to the\cover.

\ These and other objects will become more apparent as the following description proceeds in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a bottom plan view of the top of an ironing board showing\the present cover applied thereto;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary enlarged group perspective view of the cover shdwing the manner of assembling the invention;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary enlarged perspective view of ice the opposite marginal edges of the cover as assembled in its final form;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary enlarged perspective view of the marginal edge of a modified form of the cover; and Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 showing a further modified form of the cover.

Specific reference will now be made to the drawings wherein similar reference characters are used for corresponding elements throughout.

The present invention comprises a cover of any desired fabric such as canvas duck, cut to substantially the same shape as the top 12 of the ironing board but somewhat larger so that the marginal edge 14 thereof can embrace the marginal edge of the ironing board top.

A reinforcing band or bias binding 16 is provided which is generally U-shaped in cross-section. Before the legs 18 and 20 are made to straddle the marginal edge 14 of the fabric 10, there to be secured to the fabric by appropriate stitching 22 around the entire periphery of the fabric, the band or bias binding is provided with spaced longitudinally extending apertures 24. For ease of manufacture, it is preferred that the apertures be in the form of button holes approximately an inch long, as shown clearly in Figures 2 and 3.

After the reinforcing band or bias binding is sewn to the marginal edge 14 of the fabric by the stitching 22, a first draw string 26 is extended through the binding. The cover is then placed on the ironing board top and the free ends of the draw string extending through one of the apertures 24 are knotted as at 28. This applies only longitudinal tension to the cover.

To apply transverse tension to the sides of the cover so that the same is perfectluy taut around the periphery of the ironing board cover, portions of the draw string 26 are pulled through the apertures or button holes 24 to provide eyelets 30. It will be observed that the eyelets are in staggered relationship when the cover is in position on the ironing board top.

A means is provided to coactwith the eyelets to apply tension to the sides of the cover and this means is preferably an additional draw string 32 which is laced, crisscross, through the eyelets and engaged beneath the ironing board top, as shown clearly in Figure 1. One end of the draw string 32 is knotted as at 34, and after proper tension is applied to the draw string, its opposite end is tied down as at 36.

As a result of this operation, appropriate longitudinal and transverse tension is applied to the cover so that it is sufiiciently taut around the periphery of the ironing board cover to eliminate wrinkles, distortions, and movement in the cover.

A means may be associated with the eyelets to prevent their withdrawal or retraction into the bias binding 16. Such a means may be a ring 38 engaging each of the eyelets, as shown in Figure 4, the second draw string 32 being laced through said rings. Such a means may also be a split band 40 pressed about each eyelet adjacent each button hole, as shown in Figure 5, the second draw string being laced through the eyelets.

The provision of a reinforcing band or bias binding, in place of a hem, yields marked advantages in the manufacture of the cover. The sewing of button holes 24 in a bias binding is a simple, high-speed operation. So is the sewing of the binding with the preformed button holes to the marginal edge of the cover. On the other hand, it is slow and difiicult cleanly to hem around the sharp corners of an ironing board cover, and it is even slower and more difficult to provide button holes in the hem. Also, the use of a bias binding effects savings not only in labor, but in costs of materials, since the cover fabric is more expensive than the binding fabric and less of the former is required in the present invention. In addition,

a the present invention can easily be applied to thick layers of materials, such as pads, which are virtually impossible to hem and to provide with button holes.

- It is to be, distinctly understood that the term ironing board cover as used herein means a cover or pad for ironing boards or heads of pressing machines.

While preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described hereabove, minor variations thereof may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claim. Thus, for example, the'draw strings may be elasticized or the bias binding may be elasticized, if preferred.

I claim:

An ironing board cover comprising a fabric of sub 1 in said edge binding having free ends extending through one of said apertures and adaptedto be knotted thereat to provide longitudinal tension to the cover, said draw string including eyelets extending through the remaining apertures, and a further draw string laced through said eyelets and adapted to bridge the underside of the ironing board and to exert transverse tension to the cover.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 388,075 Saeger Aug. 21, 1888 876,410 Stone Jan. 14, 1908 893,215 Wilson July 14, 1908 941,430 Stone. Nov. 30, 1909 1,108,262 Smith Aug. 25, 1914 1,396,799 Wiberley' Nov. 15, 1921 2,031,595 Finck Feb. 25, 1936 2,119,427 Edwards May 31, 1938 2,264,644 Santangelo Dec. 2, 1941 2,269,804 Allabaclc Jan. 13, 1942 

